As fundamental components of a language, words are essential for successful language learning. Vocabulary learning strategies thus become a vital important field to be focused on. This investigation is based on the framework of O' Malley and Chamot' s (1990) taxonomy about language learning strategies, which include metacognitive strategies, cognitive strategies, and social/affective strategies. This study aims at studying the relationship between students' attitudes toward vocabulary learning, their vocabulary learning strategies and their vocabulary level. The participants of this study are fifty English majors from a university in China. A vocabulary test and a questionnaire are used so as to collect data from the investigated students. Finally, this study generates the following results: (1) the students hold a neutral attitude toward vocabulary learning, and they believe vocabulary learning sometimes is interesting, but sometimes not; (2) the students adopt all the three strategies, but cognitive strategies are most frequently used; (3) the correlation analysis shows that there is a significant relationship between the students' attitudes and their strategy use, the strategy use and their vocabulary level; (4) the successful learners are more positive as regards English vocabulary learning, and adopt learning strategies more frequently than less successful learners. Based on the findings of the investigation, some pedagogical implications are provided to suggest teachers encourage and help students to hold an active and positive attitude toward English learning, and introduce more learning strategies to promote the students' English acquisition.

The use of vocabulary learning strategies is one crucial factor that affects the success of foreign vocabulary acquisition. This case study investigated a group of Chinese sophmores’ employment of learning strategies in their learning process in order to identify the most frequently used strategies and the least frequently used strategies, and compared good language learners with poor learners. A 26-item five-scale point questionnaire was employed for data collection. Through careful calculation and detailed discussion, it was found that both good and poor language learners used many effective strategies for vocabulary learning. This group of students were found that they tended to carry a pocket dictionary to look up new words while they were least likely to look up new words in an English-English dictionary. Good language learner were found to employ learning strategies more frequently than poor leaners in 21 strategies, which revealed that vocabulary learning strategies were positively related to learning outcomes.

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This essay aims on the study of the strategies used by Chinese English major students in vocabulary learning, the differences between effective and less effective learners in using vocabulary learning strategies. The study is based on qualitative research, in which 35 college students were investigated. The participants were asked to take a vocabulary tests and complete a questionnaire. The data of the research indicates that there are significant differences between effective and less effective learner, and common points between effective learners. Effective learners use several learning methods and have a positive attitude. Meanwhile, there are six methods they use in common, they are, having interest in English, listening and reading, learning words in sentence, using bilingual dictionary, reading English books in spare time and studying the spelling. Acquisition of vocabulary has been acknowledged as primary important and being central for second language acquisition. Vocabulary is always a hindrance to Chinese students. However, there is little research has been done on the vocabulary learning strategies used by Chinese English majors.

This paper reports on the study of the strategy use of Chinese English majors in vocabulary learning; the individual differences between effective and less effective learners in employing vocabulary learning strategies and the relationship between their strategies and their outcome in English learning. In this research, 118 junior English majors inChineseUniversitywere investigated. The participants were asked to take a vocabulary test and complete a vocabulary-learning questionnaire.   The data collected was analyzed using the SPSS (the Statistical Package for Social Science) and the result indicates that there are significant differences between effective and less effective learners. Effective learners use strategies more frequently and flexibly, while less effective learners turn out to be rote learners. They employ repetition strategy more often and they rely more on their mother tongue, Chinese, in vocabulary learning. Thus the translation strategy was extensively used among them. The result also shows that seven strategies, namely applied, categorization, self-monitoring, cooperation, media, elaboration and dictionary strategy are positively correlated with the vocabulary test scores and the Test for English Majors (Grade 4) scores. The above findings have certain implication for both learners and teachers.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(人間・環境学) / 甲第23275号 / 人博第990号 / 新制||人||234(附属図書館) / 2020||人博||990(吉田南総合図書館) / 京都大学大学院人間・環境学研究科共生人間学専攻 / (主査)准教授 金丸 敏幸, 教授 桂山 康司, 准教授 笹尾 洋介, 教授 田地野 彰 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Human and Environmental Studies / Kyoto University / DGAM

Recent research has underscored the important role of second language (L2) vocabulary acquisition in the reading process. The present study examined how accurately eighteen learners of English as a Second Language (ESL) were able to identify unknown words within a reading passage. It is assumed that "noticing" unfamiliar words in a text plays an important role in being able to extract meaning from context, which may ultimately result in word learning; thus, whether or not learners are able to recognize unknown words as unknown is a key step in vocabulary learning. The design of this study was based on previous research (Laufer and Yano, 2001) on the connection between first language background and self-assessment of L2 word knowledge. The first three steps of the Lafuer and Yano study were used in this study. In the first step, ESL learners self-assessed their ability to identify selected words in a text. After this, L2 learners explained or translated the meanings of the words. Finally, the two sets of data were analyzed to measure correlations. The findings of the study showed that teachers, as well as learners, should not underestimate the importance of vocabulary. Instead, they should provide more explicit vocabulary instruction and practice. In addition, L2 learners need to learn to identify words that are unknown. The act of "noticing" unknown words and identifying them as such is the initial step towards building vocabulary through reading. Lastly, L2 learners should not rely solely on context clues for the "guessing" strategy when they have a limited level of vocabulary because they may develop mistaken word knowledge, which would impact reading comprehension. Instead, learners should develop a wide range of strategies to comprehend academic reading.

This research focuses on the strategies that native English speakers use as they learn to speak and write Chinese vocabulary words in the first year of an elementary Chinese class. The main research question was: what strategies do native English-speaking beginning learners of Chinese use to learn Chinese vocabulary words in their speaking and writing? The study was conducted at a medium-sized comprehensive university in the Southeastern U.S. The study drew from concepts and theories in second language acquisition and psycholinguistic studies. A random sampling of four students was selected in their first year of Chinese study for qualitative analyses. Data were collected from demographic student surveys, reflection papers, interviews, observation and field notes, weekly diary of the students and Strategies Inventory for Language Learning (SILL). The conclusions from this study provide insight as to how students of this demographic approach the challenge of learning Chinese. From this study, a clear picture emerges that students use different strategies to learn Chinese. Some students respond better to sound while others are more visually based learners. However, in this study, students used combinations of audio, visual, and kinesthetic learning techniques. The tonality of spoken Chinese was one of the most difficult skills to master and this aspect of the language frustrated many students. This is a widely recognized problem with Chinese education. Nevertheless, students enjoyed the artistic nature of Chinese characters and for the most part enjoyed writing them. This element can be emphasized in Chinese instruction to motivate students and appeal to visual learners. Similarly, integrating instruction on Chinese culture into language classes made the Elementary Chinese curriculum more appealing to students. Using native Chinese speakers from the local community in the language curriculum, reinforced classroom instruction, made the instruction more relevant, and increased student interest. Encouraging students to attend Chinese cultural events in the community had many of the same positive benefits for students. The motivations for learning revealed in this study are very interesting and support earlier studies of Chinese learners. Personal and profession interests as well as a combination of both these factors were the most commonly cited reasons for learning Chinese. Maintaining proper motivation is a pivotal factor that determines the success of many elementary learners including the students in this study. When students lost their motivation, interest in the curriculum and learning declined as well. Teachers need to be aware of motivations and attempt to foster them in individual students in order to maximize the learning experience. / Ph. D.

本研究旨在探討台灣綜合高中學生學習字彙時所運用的字彙學習策略，研究問題主要探討：學術學程及職業學程的學生在學習字彙時是否運用不同的字彙學習策略並找出其較常和較少使用之字彙學習策略，以及字彙學習高成就者和低成就者字彙學習策略之差異。藉此俾能提供英文老師幫助不同學程、成就的學生運用字彙學習策略，以期達到更佳的字彙學習成效。 本研究抽樣台北縣、市8所綜合高中共648位高三學生為調查對象，研究工具為字彙學習策略問卷與字彙能力測驗。分析方法主要採量化分析，包括獨立樣本t檢定、描述性統計、斯皮爾曼等級相關，本研究結果發現如下： 一、學術學程及職業學程的學生之字彙學習策略使用頻率具有顯著差異，學術學程的學生比職業學程的學生運用較多決定策略及記憶策略。 二、學術學程及職業學程的學生之字彙學習策略使用頻率排序相同，在發現字義部份依序為決定策略、社會策略；在鞏固字義部份依序為認知策略、記憶策略、後設認知策略、社會策略。 三、字彙學習高成就者和低成就者之字彙學習策略使用頻率具有顯著差異，高成就者比低成就者運用較多字彙學習策略。 最後，本文依據研究結果，提出老師英語教學上之應用及未來研究之建議。 / The purpose of this study was to investigate the vocabulary learning strategies used by comprehensive high school students in Taiwan. There were three questions focusing on the differences of use frequency of vocabulary learning strategies between academic-oriented and vocational-oriented students, the strategy use rank between these two groups of students, as well as the relation between vocabulary achievement and vocabulary learning strategy use frequency. A total of 648 students in Taipei City and Taipei County participated in the study. A vocabulary learning strategy questionnaire and a vocabulary achievement test were applied as instruments to obtain the data needed. Data from the students’ responses were computed and analyzed by means of independent-sample t-tests, descriptive statistics, and Spearman’s rank correlation. The findings of this study were summarized as follows. 1.There was a significant difference in vocabulary learning strategy use frequency between academic-oriented students and vocational-oriented students. The former applied more determination strategies to discover the meaning of a new word, and more memory strategies to consolidate the words encountered. 2.The ranking order of use frequency in vocabulary learning strategies by academic-oriented and vocational-oriented students was identical. In Part 1 (discovering the meaning of a new word), determination strategies were used most frequently, then followed by social strategies. In part 2 (consolidating the words encountered), cognitive strategies were used most frequently, followed by memory strategies, metacognitive strategies, and the last, social strategies. 3.There was a significant difference between good learners and poor learners in vocabulary learning strategy use frequency. Good learners applied more vocabulary learning strategies than poor learners to know an English word’s meaning. Based on the above results, some pedagogical implications for English teachers were developed and suggestions for future research were provided at the end of the study.

This research is an empirical multiple-case study that is designed to explore adult individual learners’ vocabulary learning processes, and to examine their use of vocabulary learning strategies. It investigates the following key questions: (1) What vocabulary learning strategies do the individual learners usually use to find the meaning of unknown words? (2) What vocabulary learning strategies do the individual learners usually use to consolidate the words? (3) How do the individual learners apply the vocabulary learning strategies for the purposes mentioned above? (4) What are the differences between the learners’ use of vocabulary learning strategies? By using multiple data collection methods – questionnaires, interviews, and think-aloud protocols – I not only investigate what strategies the individual research participants use to study vocabulary, but also look at how they actually employ the strategies while completing a series of vocabulary activities. Finally, I also compare the patterns in the use of strategies between the participants. After the introduction, Chapter Two begins with the clarification of basic terms: “word,” “word knowledge,” and “strategy.” In Chapter Three, studies in the fields of vocabulary learning strategies are reviewed. Chapter Four deals with mental processes involved in vocabulary learning. Chapter Five focuses on the empirical study. I describe briefly the German language course (GER 101) and the language textbook, Vorsprung (2nd edition, 2002), and illustrate in depth the methodology used for data collection and data analysis. The results of the study are presented in Chapter Six. Chapter Seven summarizes the study results, followed by suggestions for foreign vocabulary instruction and for future research. The study illustrates that participants used a variety of vocabulary learning strategies to learn vocabulary. In total, 49 individual vocabulary learning strategies are identified and classified. Further, the differences between the learners are shown to be not only in what strategies they use but also in how they employ them. Finally, the study shows that well-organized and planned learning strategy training should be provided to language learners in order to make sure that they can use the strategies effectively, and that language instructors and the language textbook should play an active role in strategy training.